Insulating part of storage batteries



Patented Feb. 2, 1943 2,310,077

INSULATING PART OF STORAGE BATTERIES Mortimer T. Harvey, East Orange, N. J., asslgnor to The Harvel Corporation, a corporation of New Jersey No Drawing; Application October 9,

, Serial No. 298,705

7 Claims.

The present invention relates to electrical insulating and mechanically spacing or supporting elements made from cashew nut shell liquid for use in storage batteries in positions and for purshell liquid has been brought to a definite state or form. The materials of the present invention are suitable also for use in the grid separators and side insulators and other parts of storage poses in which they are subject to contact with batteries of the nickel hydroxide type in which the electrolyte of the storage battery. an alkaline solution is used as the electrolyte.

An object of the present invention is to provide The products of the present invention can be storage battery elements which are subject to made either with or without the incorporation contact with the electrolyte of the battery andof plastic rubber as shown by following examples. which are inert to or will resist the chemical 10 One of the advantages of the present invention is action of the electrolyte. that the use of the modified cashew nut shell liq- According to the present invention, insulating uid decreases the amount of sulphur used in vulor mechanically spacing or supporting parts subcanizing the rubber or makes it possible to enject to contact with the electrolyte of a storage tirely eliminate the sulphur and thereby reduces battery are made of cashew nut shell liquid which or eliminates the action of the electrolyte on the has been modified to a state in which it is resulphur. sistant to the action of the electrolyte and has Illustrative examples of embodiments of the mechanical and electrical characteristics to suit p nt i v n n are as f l w the purpose of its use. Example 1 The storage battery parts of the present inventlo mad of modified cashew t n nquid, Cashew nut shell liquid was distilled with steam are resistant both to acid solutions such as sulat about about until about one phuric acid and to solutions of alkaline matehalf of the original Weight remained as a heavy i l h as putagsium hydroxide and sedi viscous residue. About one hundred parts by hydroxide. weight of this residue, one part of diethyl sul- Examples of parts of storage battery made phate and twenty parts of furfuraldehyde were according to the present invention are the box mixed together at about and Poured While or casing for holding the electrolyte which can be hot into a rectangular mold after which the mold required to support the elements of the electrodes was loosely covered and the Whole heated in an of the cells' of the batte y, p rforate holders of oven at about for about Sixteen hours? t bm and other shapes for upporting lead At theend of this period the material had solidioxide paste of the negative electrodes of leadboth by Polymerization and by condensation l d peroxide-sulphuric acid type of battery and with the furfuraldehyde, to a rubber-like block. spacing sheets interposed between the negative This block was removed from the mold and then and positive plates of storage batteries of var- Sliced with a band Saw and the Slices heated i types Th storage tt box can be made ther at about 220F. for sixteen hours. The surentirely of modified cashew nut shell liquid or the faces of these slices were then smoothed oil and a lining thereof can be a f modifi d cashew multiplicity of fine openings punched in the slices 1; shell ljqujd w the entire box is made to form grid-like structures which were suitable of this material it can be of mechanical strength for use as sepaliators in storage batteries of the required of it as a container and when the box sulpuurio i electrolyte and Potassium is lined of this material variations can be made droxlde typesto suit expansion and contraction of the material Example 2 of the box itself. When electrode separators are About event-five arts b wei ht of ore inade of material it canbecf modifications rubber; i fi r 5 mgr ge of ashgs 0 S 11 t requirements o flexlblllliy a o 811115- nut shell liquid which has been modified to a t g i g r ge c a pe ation such as the resilient rubber-like state by polymerization, sixty gn other caselg perfzraze se 32 t W 811 requiredparts of sulphur and nine parts of hexamethylene b D 0.911 made tetramine were thoroughly mixed together and y m p e removable matenal th t sheeted on a rubber mill and then cured for one modified cashew nut shell liquid in the preparahour. at about F This av an exc 11 nt tion of the separator, said removable material stock fo punching batte gseeamtor i 5 being removed by water solution or chemical ac- W p p a tion of sulphuric acid or caustic solution or in Example 3 some other way after the modifiedv cashew nut y About one hundred parts by weight of rubber,

nine parts of zinc oxide, one hundred parts of the cashed nut shell liquid polymer described in Example 2, fifty parts of sulphur and two parts of diphenyl guanidine were mixed and sheeted out on a rubber mixing roll and cured for one hour at about 300 F.

Example 4 About one hundred parts by weight of crepe rubber, fifty parts of sulphur, nine parts of zinc oxide, two parts of diphenyl guanidine and fifty parts of a heat reactive resin made by heating together one hundred parts each of cardanol and cashew nut shell liquid, fifteen parts of hexamethylene tetramine and four parts of copper oleate at about 250 F. topbtain a solid button of heat reactive resin on cooling. Cardanol is a phenol and is the distillate obtained on the steam distillation of cashew nut shell liquid at about 250 F. to about 300 F. until about half of the cashew nut shell liquid was left as a residue, described in Example 1 above. A mixture of the heat reactive resin and the other ingredients above set forth in this example were milled to-' gether and sheeted out on a, rubber mill with a hot roll and then cured for one-half hour at about 155 F.

Example 5 Another example was made up and cured in the same manner and with the same ingredients, in the same proportions, as in Example 4 except that for the heat reactive resin described therein there was substituted the same quantity of a heat reactive resin made by heating together under a reflux condenser about one hundred parts by weight of 'cardanol, thirty five parts of a commercial water-formaldehyde solution of about 37% strength and about one hundred parts of a technical grade of ammonia at about 200 F. for about one hour and then de hydated and then bodies at about 250 F.

Example 6 About one hundred parts by weight of a rubber-like polymer of cashew nut shell liquid and four parts of hexamethylene tetramine were milled together on a rubber mill for about thirty minutes and then sheeted, and the sheeted stock cured in a. press for about thirty minuted at about 310 F. and then for one hour at 250 F. in

an oven.

Example 7 In another example there was added to the ingredients of Example 6 ten parts of a rubberlike resin made by polymerizing one cardanol with sulphuric acid or other polymerizing agent to a thick liquid and then adding to one hundred parts by weightof this thick liquid polymer, four parts of hexamethylene tetramine and heating at about 250 F. until a heavy rubber-like reaction product is obtained. The mixture of rubber-like resin, rubber-like polymer of cashew nut shell liquid and hexamethylene tetramine were milled, sheeted and cured in the same manner as in Example 6.

Example 8 In a further example the ingredients were the same as in Example '7 except that twenty parts of the rubber-like resin were added to the ingredients of Example 6. The treatment of the ingredients of Example 8 were the same as in Examples 6 and 7.

General example To about one hundred parts by weight of the cashew nut shell liquid residue described in Example 1 are added five parts of diethyl sulphate and twenty parts of furfuraldehyde, the whole being thoroughly mixed together at about 180 F. and cured over night at about 250 F. and then ground to a predetermined fineness.

Example 10 Two hundred parts by weight of the residue described in Example 1, one hundred parts of cashew nut shell liquid, twenty parts of paraformaldehyde and three parts of diethyl sulphate are mixed together at about 180 F. and then, cured over night at about 250 F. and then ground to a dust.

Specific examples of mixtures of cashew nut shell liquid dust material in cashew nut shell liquid modified cashew nut shell liquid for the purposes of the present invention are as follows:

Example 11 About fifty parts by weight of the dust of Example 9, five parts of hexamethylene tetramine and one hundred parts of a viscous, rubber-like material made by heating together about one hundred parts of a liquid polymer of cashew nut shell liquid and about seven parts of hexamethylene tetramine are mixed together and sheeted on the rubber mill.

Example 12 In another example the formula of Example 11 is used but the amount of the dust of Example 9 is increased from fifty parts to one hundred parts.

The sheeted products of Examples 11 and can be handled as in the other examples for making separators. And as in the general example the dust of Example 10 can be used in place of all or part of the dust of Example 9 in Examples 11 and 12.

The fineness of the dust of Examples 9 and 10 when used as described in the general example can be from about 70 to mesh, but coarser or finer dusts can be used.

One advantage of the use of the dust is that it is an aid in obtaining a good sheeted stock which can be punched or stamped to form perforated separators.

The temperatures and length of time of curing the various stocks of the above examples can be varied to obtain various degrees of flexibility or stiffness or of hardness or of toughness or britleness to suit various conditions or purposes.

The material of Example 1 and the variations thereof given in Examples 9 and 10 can be cast in molds to form battery boxes or tubular lead peroxide holders which can be slitted with saws to form perforations therethrough and to .nake other shapes and forms.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A storage battery separator comprising a flat perforated non-conducting sheet -made of polymerized cashew nut shell liquid.

2. A non-conducting separator for storage battery plates comprising polymerized cashew nut shell liquid. v

3. In a storage battery of the lead-lead peroxide-sulphuric acid electrolyte type, a part for retaining active material of said battery in desired position, said part being made of an alde-' hyde-cashew nut shell liquid resin.

4. In a storage battery of the lead-lead peroxide-sulphuric acid electrolyte typ apart for retaining active material of said battery in desired position; said part being made of an aldehyde-polymerized cashew nut shell liquid resin.

5.-In a storage battery of the lead-lead per oxide-sulphuric acid electrolyte type, a part for retaining active material of said battery in desired position, said part being made of an aldehyde-cashew nut shell liquid distillation residue resin.

6. In' a storage battery of the lead-lead peroxide-sulphuric acid electrolyte type. a part for retaining active material of said battery in deliquid.

MOR'ITMER T. 

